I WAS The Rank–1 Hero

Our boots touched down on the sandbank of Isla Island.

"This place is… quiet," Ruby whispered, her gaze scanning the treeline surrounding us.

It was only the four of us Ruby, me, Maria, and one of Maria's maids who stepped foot here.

Honestly, I expected something more dramatic.

You know, grand gates, elegant statues carved from divine marble, golden walkways… something Olympus-worthy.

But this? This was just… nature.

Literally, everywhere my eyes could see were either massive trees or water bodies.

And the breeze brushing through the canopy and birds chirping from above.

"This is it?" I muttered under my breath.

Maria walked slightly ahead of us, her maid following closely behind.

"It is," she replied without turning around. "Lord Karton doesn't like visitors. You're only the second he'll meet."

I blinked. "So you were the first?"

Maria nodded.

So the God of Time met Maria first… and now me.

"Wait, does that mean you were his first ever Apostle?"

She tilted her head to glance at me slightly. "You could say that."

"Interesting."

Sometimes I forget that this Maria Frostvile was a royal born, someone who should have died centuries ago.

Anyways, these gods really are antisocial. Makes me wonder what they were like as kids.

If they even had a childhood.

I mean… seriously. Were they born as full-grown glowing adults? Or did someone give birth to them? Did they cry? Did they throw tantrums?

I pictured Agroth in a baby form.

"..."

'That's not a rabbit hole you want to fall into,' I told myself.

Makes me wonder, what Karton really wanted from me.

Goddess Ylthea and Agroth offered me their Authority. And now Karton—he's the third god choosing to make direct contact with me.

Was it because of the Prophecy?

Recalling the prophecy, a chill ran down my spine.

It was Nathalia who told me about my Prophecy.

'By my hands, the final era of the Gods shall be rewritten. I will either forge a new order beyond divinity or bring the gods to their ends.'

No wonder every other god and deity wants me as their ally.

I didn't know. And that was the part that made me nervous.

My thoughts drifted again.

'Say,' I asked inside my mind, 'Sera… when was the last time you met Goddess Eris?'

There was a pause. A long one.

Then her voice came.

'It's… been a while.'

"How long is a while?" I asked husly.

'Long enough that even I have trouble remembering the last thing she said to me.'

I frowned.

Eris was her goddess. If even Sera hadn't met her in ages… then where the hell were the rest of the gods?

That reminded me of another troublesome person.

"Mue, when was the last time you talked to Karton?"

The DNA-like helix on the back of my hand blinked with a soft golden glow.

"Mmhmm… Mue doesn't want to recall," she replied.

"Eh? Why not?"

"It's not that Mue doesn't want to… Mue can't."

My eyelid twitched.

"Care to explain why you can't?"

"Because Mue has short memory."

"..."

She's useless.

"So you can't remember the last time you spoke to him?"

"Exactly! Mue only stores a hundred thousand years of memory. Anything beyond that gets overwritten."

So her last conversation with Karton happened over a hundred thousand years ago?

Wait… how the hell hundred thousand years of memory became short.

"Sigh…"

Great. At least that's one thing I figured out.

Five minutes passed.

We walked deeper into the island, the path narrowed.

The trees grew denser, their thick branches tangling above us until the sunlight dimmed to a soft, leafy glow.

Every now and then, a ray of light pierced through, landing in golden pools on the mossy stone beneath our feet. In the background chirping of birds, and hooting of monkeys.

It was calm.

Even the wind felt pleasant.

I glanced at Ruby walking beside me. Her fingers hovered near the hilt of her katana, barely touching the handle, but close enough that with one twitch she would draw the blade.

She was cautious.

And her expression was that quiet edge between alert and haunted. Like someone expecting something…

Even so, she walked beside me.

Even when her body was tense, even when her heart wasn't at ease, she still chose to stay here.

That alone… lightened my chest.

I didn't say anything.

But I think she noticed.

"You okay?" she whispered, her eyes scanning the forest ahead.

"Yeah," I nodded. "I should be the one asking you that."

She gave a soft chuckle. "I'm completely fine."

Walking beside her, my shoulders brushed hers.

"Are you worried because there's a god are involved?"

She shook her head. "That too. But the thing I am most worried about is you."

She looked away, but I saw a bitter smile on her face.

I didn't say anything.

We halted near what looked like an old wooden bridge.

It stretched out from the stone road, connecting our path to a misty cliff on the other side.

The wooden bridge swayed faintly in the breeze.

I glanced over the edge and narrowed my eyes.

"That's so deep."

Below… was a pit. A massive one.

Covered in a blanket of slow-moving mist, so deep I couldn't even see the bottom.

Maria finally stopped and turned toward us.

"Beyond this bridge lies Lord Karton's villa," she said.

"Villa?" Ruby asked, raising a brow.

Honestly, I wasn't even surprised.

I'd already seen the God of Death lounging in a gentleman's suit, so a god owning a villa just felt… expected.

Maria nodded.

"Lord Karton doesn't entertain mortals. Not even apostles of other gods are granted an audience before. But he'll make an exception for you and your partner."

I blinked.

So Ruby would meet him too?

That's new.

Ruby glanced down at herself, then wrinkled her nose.

"I should've worn something else…" she muttered, sniffing her sleeves. "Oh god. I still smell like salted fish from the ship."

"Hahaa, don't worry," Maria said with a small smile. "Lord Karton isn't fond of ceremony."

"Ceremony?" Ruby echoed.

"He finds polite greetings, titles, and curtsies irritating. Says they waste time."

"Great," I whispered. "A god with social anxiety."

"Hey don't call him that!" Mue interrupted.

I and everyone else ignored her.

Ruby let out a nervous breath.

"So… I just talk like normal?"

"As normal as you can," Maria replied, adjusting her coat. "Just don't stare at his hourglass."

"Hourglass?"

"You'll see."

I exchanged a glance with Ruby.

She was nervous.

…

We stepped onto the old wooden bridge.

The mist beneath us rolled and shifted, but as we neared the center, it thinned just enough to show what lay ahead.

And what I saw made my feet slow.

It wasn't some divine temple or celestial hall.

It was a farm.

A literal farm.

The kind with tilled soil and rows of vegetables, neatly partitioned. I saw some pumpkins, some leafy greens, even what looked like carrots from here.

I blinked twice to confirm I wasn't hallucinating.

"Mooooo~"

Cows were grazing in the distance.

"What the…" I breathed.

Ruby tugged my sleeve suddenly.

"Look over there," she said, pointing to the side.

I turned to where her finger led, and squinted my eyes.

Was that…?

"Is that a tractor?" I asked.

A rusty red tractor sat at the edge of the field, parked like it had just finished its morning shift.

"H-Hey, look there," Ruby added, tugging me again. "That building in the center.'

It was made of shining glass panels and silver framing.

At first, I was confused. But then I noticed the fogging on the inside, the arranged rows of green inside the structure.

"That's a greenhouse," I murmured, stunned.

Wow.

The island was big, sure but I never expected this.

A literal working farm in the middle of an Island?

Karton really was… something.

Maybe more than Agroth.

Just then, Maria pointed to our right.

"Don't get too distracted," she said with a faint smile. "You haven't seen the main attraction."

I turned my head and froze.

There was a villa.

But not just any villa.

It was massive and modern built between two hill ridges, with large white stone walls and glass panels that reflected the afternoon light.

Water trickled down a fountain by the side. And a small wooden path snaked through a garden of trimmed bonsai and clean stone tiles.

It was a piece of art.

"That's his place?" Ruby asked.

Maria nodded. "Yes. That's Lord Karton's villa."

I honestly didn't know what I expected.

But this?

This was luxury.

'But, didn't Maria say he wasn't fond of ceremony…''

"…I kind of want to live here," I muttered before I could stop myself.

Ruby chuckled softly beside me. "Yeah… same."

Scrape—thunk—

A dull, steady sound echoed from somewhere nearby.

All of our heads turned in unison.

Somewhere off to the left of the greenhouse, a figure stood hunched in the dirt, digging the soil with a simple hand hoe.

It was an old man.

Wearing a thin, wrinkled white shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His pants were loose, dark and faded. A straw hat rested atop his head.

I blinked.

"Look at that, this place even had a farmer?" Ruby whispered, narrowing her eyes.

I replied frowning. "Karton must have hired him."

Looking around me, I get the feeling Karton loves farming.

I even imagined he had maids and butlers in that giant villa.

Scrape—scrape—thunk.

He didn't look at us once.

'Hm?" My head turned towards Maria.

She stepped forward.

Walked a few paces ahead of us, and then… she bowed her head.

"I have returned, Lord Karton."

My heart skipped.

'That's him!?'